Between the Worlds

Hi everyone,

I'm back again. It's been a while since my last entry. Today I want to talk about the most beautiful events that have happened since then.

Starting with the visit of my girlfriend here in Namibia. Rosalie landed on December 10, 2024. We spent a week in Windhoek, where I showed her my life here. Then we went to Etosha National Park, where I saw the stunning nature of Namibia in all its glory for the first time. Over the holidays, we went to Swakopmund by the sea. We took a surfing lesson, visited the desert, and took a flight along the coast. We spent Christmas with our landlord in the vacation apartment and Jürg from Berlin (he was on vacation alone and we met him while surfing before). We had duck with dumplings and red cabbage, a very traditional German meal. Thus, I even had a somewhat 'normal' Christmas, even though I obviously missed my family and the shining eyes of my nieces and nephews. For Rosalie, she headed back to Berlin on December 27. I spent the New Year and the rest of the summer vacation relaxing in Windhoek.

In January, Rodriko moved into my room, and since then we've been sharing the space. At the end of February, we had a mid-term seminar for our volunteer service. All volunteers from Namibia and our organization met on a farm. For a week, we reflected on our experiences so far, discussed the meaning of our work, and talked about what we would like to achieve for the rest of the year. The highlight was climbing a mountain. We got up specially at 5:30 AM and all set out together at 6:00 AM. Not everyone made it to the top; there was no hiking trail, and we had to fight our way through thorn bushes. Moreover, this year is especially remarkable as it has rained more from December to mid-April than it has in the past twenty years ('It never rained this much in my life' - Rodriko, 22 years old). Thus, the view from the mountain was breathtaking, as everything is green.

On March 19 and 20, I played two concerts with the national orchestra. We performed Namibian compositions for Independence Day on March 21. For my 19th birthday on March 24, I baked two cakes for the children, Amelie and Viki made a cake for me. They also gifted me a Bluetooth speaker, so I can now listen to music in the shower.

On April 3, Mom and Dad landed in Windhoek. I showed them YONA and Windhoek. Four days later, they set off on their big tour of Namibia. I spent another week in Windhoek, which concluded with the Baroque Festival, consisting of two wonderful concerts with the national orchestra.

The following week, I made my way south to spend a week of luxury vacation with Mom and Dad. We visited Deadvlei, the ghost town Kolmannskuppe, Lüderitz, and the Fish River Canyon. There was so much food that we almost exploded every evening. The endless expanses through which we drove were especially amazing (it looks like a western movie).

On May 1, I said goodbye to Mom and Dad; the time with them was super nice. Just on May 2, I went to Schlip, a corrugated iron hut settlement in the middle of nowhere. I traveled there with Rodriko and 9 others in a car. And indeed 9+2 = 11, we went as a soccer team. We played a tournament against 4 other teams on Saturday and Sunday, which we won. We spent the night on four mattresses in the church, where it was as cold at night as it was outside (below 10 degrees). Sunday morning we went to church service, which lasted 3 hours. However, it was not boring, as several people preached, and there was a lot of singing and playing music.

Since then, I am working again and back to everyday life. My return flight is approaching on June 29.

Until then                                                                                                                        Yours, Paul